A few months ago the tires that came with the vehicle when we bought it finally gave out. The rear driver side blew on the freeway. Thankfully no one was injured and the 80 handled it well. I had been looking to replace the tires I had (michelin 275/70/16 LTX M/S) since they were pretty worn and was having trouble making up my mind on what to get. My wife uses our landcruiser as a dd and it also is the vehicle we travel long distances in, so mud tires weren't in the picture. We also use it when we go camping/fishing. It sees some forest roads and an occasional 4x4 only road. Long story short, I decided on the at2 and told myself I'd write a review since I couldn't find much on MUD about them.
I don't have a lot of experience with different tires and the above 2 michelin's are the only ones I've driven this landcruiser with. I noted a couple differences right away. The increased clearance was nice, but the turn radius was affected and I didn't get the same feedback through the steering wheel as I did with the other tires, which made it seem as though I had less control of the steering. The steering wheel also wouldn't return to center on its own as easily. The ride was definitely "stiffer" with more jolts from the road transmitted. This is probably due to it being an E rated tire. There was also a noticeable change in body roll with cornering (my shocks need replacing) and a slight but noticeable change in acceleration/braking. All of this is likely related to tire size and has little to do with the tire itself, and over a short period of time I became more used to the "new" feel of the steering.
On pavement, the tires handle well; much better than the previous ones, which is to be expected given how worn out they were. They handle wet roads with standing water better too. So far I haven't had any hydroplaning or slipping. I have driven them a little bit in snow and ice but not a lot so I can't comment too much about their performance there.
Off-road the added clearance is nice. The differentials seem to lock (factory lockers
) more quickly with the larger tires. On dry dirt and rocks they have done well. The only times they have slipped is going down on steep grades with a lot of loose gravel/dirt but I felt in control the entire time. Going up the same track seemed to have less slippage. The rear end would slip a bit going up if the steep grade also had a bit of a pitch to one side. I don't know if other tires handle this better or not because of my limitted exposure to driving with other tires. Mild mud they handle ok. Again it seems worse when the track is tilted to one side causing the back end to want to slide out. I have a couple new good sized scratches on the side of the landcruiser from driving a pretty level road with a bit of pitch towards the passenger side. It was a narrow track with a bit of mud. In trying to negotiate the turn, the vehicle just slid sideways into the brush on the edge of the road. They didn't instill a lot of confidence in that sort of setting. Deeper mud would be a problem. I haven't gotten stuck yet but could see it happening. I am curious how mud tires handle lateral sliding in situations like this.
Overall I have been happy with the tires though. They work well for most of our driving. I would prefer if they handled mud a little better, but I don't come across it much and they handle it as well as can be expected from a non-mud tire. Hope this review helps anyone else in the market for new tires.
The first picture is with the old tires. The next 2 are with the new ones. I realize the pictures are small. I guess I need to become a silverstar member.
I don't have a lot of experience with different tires and the above 2 michelin's are the only ones I've driven this landcruiser with. I noted a couple differences right away. The increased clearance was nice, but the turn radius was affected and I didn't get the same feedback through the steering wheel as I did with the other tires, which made it seem as though I had less control of the steering. The steering wheel also wouldn't return to center on its own as easily. The ride was definitely "stiffer" with more jolts from the road transmitted. This is probably due to it being an E rated tire. There was also a noticeable change in body roll with cornering (my shocks need replacing) and a slight but noticeable change in acceleration/braking. All of this is likely related to tire size and has little to do with the tire itself, and over a short period of time I became more used to the "new" feel of the steering.
On pavement, the tires handle well; much better than the previous ones, which is to be expected given how worn out they were. They handle wet roads with standing water better too. So far I haven't had any hydroplaning or slipping. I have driven them a little bit in snow and ice but not a lot so I can't comment too much about their performance there.
Off-road the added clearance is nice. The differentials seem to lock (factory lockers
) more quickly with the larger tires. On dry dirt and rocks they have done well. The only times they have slipped is going down on steep grades with a lot of loose gravel/dirt but I felt in control the entire time. Going up the same track seemed to have less slippage. The rear end would slip a bit going up if the steep grade also had a bit of a pitch to one side. I don't know if other tires handle this better or not because of my limitted exposure to driving with other tires. Mild mud they handle ok. Again it seems worse when the track is tilted to one side causing the back end to want to slide out. I have a couple new good sized scratches on the side of the landcruiser from driving a pretty level road with a bit of pitch towards the passenger side. It was a narrow track with a bit of mud. In trying to negotiate the turn, the vehicle just slid sideways into the brush on the edge of the road. They didn't instill a lot of confidence in that sort of setting. Deeper mud would be a problem. I haven't gotten stuck yet but could see it happening. I am curious how mud tires handle lateral sliding in situations like this. Overall I have been happy with the tires though. They work well for most of our driving. I would prefer if they handled mud a little better, but I don't come across it much and they handle it as well as can be expected from a non-mud tire. Hope this review helps anyone else in the market for new tires.
The first picture is with the old tires. The next 2 are with the new ones. I realize the pictures are small. I guess I need to become a silverstar member.
Last edited:
